| TK's staging site |
|
By tk *Winter weather could hurt shrimping season *State DNR and U.S. Coast Guard officials ready for the annual rush to waterways *Study: Florida beaches the national leader in cleanliness *A rare World War II watchtower could tumble into the sea if it isn’t stabilized soon Centaur P 1. Australian Hospital ship Centaur Torpedoed by Japanese Submarine. The Australian Hospital Ship Centaur built on the Clyde at Grennock in 1924, was converted early in 1943 to serve in that capacity. It was in the Indian Ocean in November of 1941 that the ship rescued survivors of the German Armed Merchant ship Kormoran, which had been sunk in the fight to the death with the Australian Light Cruiser HMAS Sydney. When fitted out as a Hospital Ship she had red crosses painted on her sides, funnel and stern, from the air, a red cross was evident, horizontally on the after deck house. The ship sailed out of Sydney on the 12th. of May 1943, bound for New Guinea to collect a load of wounded, thus no patients were on board, but equipment and stores of the 2/12 Field Ambulance were loaded in the holds. Two days later, at approximately 0410 ( 4.10 AM ) when some 50 miles East North East of Brisbane, Centaur was torpedoed without any warning by Japanese Submarine I-177. The resulting death toll was appaling, only 64 survived from 332 people on board, the worst Merchant Ship tragedy on the Australian coast during WW2. Sister Ellen Savage was the only Nursing Sister from the 12 on board to survive, they spent 35 hours drifting on rafts before being found by a RAAF Anson aircraft, who homed the US Destroyer Mugford to their rescue. Ellen Savage although badly wounded herself, assisted other survivors to have her heroism later rewarded with a George Medal. It was many years later before the Japanese Government admitted that Lieutenant Commander Hajime Nakagawa as the CO of I-177 had been responsible for this dastardly act, he had been found guilty as a War Criminal for having opened fire on survivors of the British Chivalry, a ship his Boat had sunk in the Indian Ocean. He was sentenced to four years in Sugumo prison. At this time, the Deputy Prime Minister of England, Clement Attlee cabled the following message to the Australian Government:
Wreck of Centaur reported found. Or was it? However, after the Government announcement, it was generally accepted that this site was the final resting place for the Centaur. Relatives of those who had died were relieved that the ship was at last found, and memorial services were carried out at sea over the position of the supposed wreck. However it did seem strange that this wreck was but 10 miles off shore, whereas it had been reported the Hospital Ship was torpedoed 23 miles off the Queensland coast. The Australian TV programme "60 Minutes:" denies this wreck is Centaur. On Sunday the 18th. of May 2003, the TV show " 60 Minutes" went to air with a strong denial that this wreck is that of the Centaur. Again Captain Foley and the former President of the Queensland Maritime Museum were interviewed on the programme, both agian denied ever having viewed the Dennis tape. He was accused of being both a liar and a confidence man, he had been given a three year suspended sentence for theft and deception in a case unrelated to the Centaur. Captain Foley pointed out the rounded type rudder of the ship purporting to be Centaur, whereas the Hospital Ship had a square rudder, both photographs and ship drawings proved this point quite conclusively. Recent research found that the RAAF in 1995 had used the wreck of a smaller ship named Bombala, for bombing practice, and sank her in the position that was claimed to be the site of Centaur by Dennis. It does seem that a cruel hoax has been played out by Dennis, and that the authorities were only too ready to accept the claim that Centaur had been found, without properly checking the veracity of such a claim, and even declaring this site as a "War Grave." So, 60 years on, the position of the wreck of the Australian Hospital Ship Centaur, still remains a complete mystery, will the puzzle ever be solved? Post Script. So, let us hope this latest search may yield results that at last lay to rest the actual and final resting place of the unlucky Centaur. Passport to the World. Ballooning P 1. Denise and I go early morning Ballooning. Wednesday the 9th. of August 1998. Whilst staying at Cairns, Queensland we decided we would have an early start one morning and booked for a flight in a Balloon, we were collected at 0400 ( 4 AM ) by a Mini Bus which was doing the rounds picking up hearty souls for this pre dawn adventure. On arrival at the take off site, our flight vehicle was in the process of being fired up, two balloons were being prepared for their flight, with about a dozen people making the trip. Our gas filled, brightly coloured balloon , tethered by its basket was straining away, anxious to be on its way, we clambered into the basket, were told to take hold of ropes around the inside of the basket. Our pilot gave his charge another dose of gas, and we gently left the earth, it was a feeling of complete calmness, as we drifted up and up, and unless one watched our moving shadow, as the sun was now up, it was hard to believe we were actually moving. Our support four wheel drive vehicle had the task of trying to follow our tracks, as, when it was time to descend once more, it needed to find us for a return journey by road to a waiting champagne breakfast. As the morning sun gained both warmth and height, and the wind blew a little stronger, we were gayly blown across the sky, picking out the green patches of the newly planted sugar cane crops, and feeding cattle as they grazed contentedly some way below. We sailed along in close company with our sister balloon for about 40 minutes, it was time to come down, using a modern hand held phone, the pilot gave our support vehicle an idea of where to find us, warning us to hang on, down we went, a couple of mild bumps, and it was all over. We clambered out, and now it was time to deflate our balloon, and assist in rolling it all up, and then stuffing it into its storage bag. It was a wonderful feeling to lift up and then just glide along, several thousand feet up in a clear blue sky, just the hiss of the gas burner, above us the brightly coloured striped fabric of our balloon, with a large AUSTRALIA printed on. The quietness of an early morning up in the sky, an experience to be long remembered and savoured well into the future. We had indeed added another page to our travel diary, we went off to breakfast, celebrating our journey with a glass of champagne, well satisfied with our lot.
|